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Pete DeFazio
Background Allegheny County Sheriff Pete DeFazio announced his retirement in September, 2006. DeFazio told television reporters that he is close to a final decision, and that if he is retiring it is not due to a corruption investigation that has been ongoing in the department. Details In the event of a resignation, the chief deputy takes over immediately. This is William Mullen. Then the governor has 90 days to appoint a replacement who would serve until the special election (which would coincide with the regular election next year). Links Blogs * http://carbolicsmokeblog.blogspot.com/2007/02/ex-sheriff-defazio-fears-hell-be.html From Feb 2007 after getting sentence to home confinement Media * P-G editorial from June, 2006, http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06175/700782-192.stm DeFazio stepping down? Posted by andrea on September 15th, 2006 The PG is reporting that Allegheny County Sheriff Pete DeFazio is maybe “retiring” next month, 36 years after he first joined the Sheriff’s office. Of course, retirement wouldn’t shield him from indictments, should the feds find him culpable for crimes similar to those committed by his former chief deputy (…er, bribery, mail fraud, money laundering, and tampering with a witness). But at least he could receive the marshalls at home, rather than downtown. Possible special election candidates include: * William Mullen – current Chief Deputy * Herb Ohliger – Republican who recently lost to Defazio in the general election. * http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_470815.html * http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_471291.html - Dan Onorato may try to turn the office of Sheriff into an appointed one. * http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06268/724341-192.stm Editorial urging DeFazio to step down. * http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_472741.html Trib, Defazio has decided to resign at the end of October, 2006 * http://postgazette.com/pg/06273/726321-85.stm About Defazio's looming retirement * http://postgazette.com/pg/06279/727810-192.stm Editorial about making the office of sheriff an appointment. Editorial: Stick 'em up / Is anyone minding the store at the sheriff's office? If Allegheny County Sheriff Pete DeFazio were an office manager in the private sector, he'd be fired by now. The reasons are as clear as they are abundant. On his watch there have been three federal indictments, which led to two guilty pleas, one conviction and assorted pleadings of the Fifth. Superiors hit up their underlings for "contributions" to the boss's political war chest. While on sick leave, one worker put 7,800 miles on a county vehicle and charged the taxpayers for $1,600 in gasoline. Sheriff's employees did landscaping during work hours -- not at county parks or public gardens, mind you, but at the home of one of their superiors. Now a county controller's audit reveals that weak oversight, archaic methods and general chaos have hobbled financial collections at the sheriff's office. To Pete DeFazio, this is public service? According to Controller Mark Patrick Flaherty, the sheriff's office collected $2.5 million in fees that were unnecessary (and now the county Law Department must decide how to handle overpayments). Some checks intended to pay for sheriff's sales were never cashed, while some canceled checks are missing. Eight voided cash register transactions totaling $23,919 have no supporting records. Forty-five of the 55 sheriff's sale transactions sampled by county auditors were paid late. And with only an antiquated note-card file keeping track of the $10 million in monthly sheriff's sales, the office was unable to tell the controller how much it owes creditors. Although the controller said he found no evidence of illegal activity, the practices reflect gross mismanagement and disarray in a major county office. And Sheriff DeFazio can't blame anyone else -- he's been in charge for eight years. Last November, voters had a chance to replace the Democrat when he came up for re-election, but they gave his Republican challenger 43 percent of the vote -- a strong showing for a relative unknown but not enough to clean house. Now the office that was a hotbed of criminal activity is also revealed to be a lousy record-keeper and pathetic collection agent. The county can't afford it, and the public doesn't deserve it. Mr. DeFazio's new chief deputy as of April, William Mullen Jr. (P.) , said, "We're grateful to the controller for doing this audit. It's bringing us into the 21st century. It's long overdue." His desire to fix the operation is right, and the sheriff's office can only benefit from someone with Mr. Mullen's reputation as a well-regarded veteran of the Pittsburgh Police Bureau. But it's not up to the controller to make the sheriff's office work, it's up to the sheriff. If Pete DeFazio is incapable -- and evidence of that is mounting -- he should step down and let someone else do the job. Otherwise, the public will need to seek other remedies. * Sheriff-plank statement from Mark Rauterkus DeFazio